Meeting to provide more info on proposed sites for new school

SANFORD — Tonight the Sanford School Department will hold its second public information meeting regarding the selection of the site for a new high school and technical center.

The June 13 meeting will be held in the Sanford High School cafeteria at 52 SHS Boulevard at 6:30 p.m.

During the meeting, William Hoffman, of Deluca-Hoffman Civil Engineers, will give a presentation of his findings regarding the current high school property and whether it is suitable for the construction project.

Kylie Mason, of Sebago Technics, also will provide an overview of three alternative sites that have been identified off Oak Street in Springvale, off Twombley Road in Sanford, and off Route 109 in South Sanford. Mason also will present details about the sites as determined through a scoring matrix.

The meeting is open to the public and will be broadcast live on WSSR-TV on Channel 26.

In his weekly report, issued on Sunday night, Superintendent of Schools David Theoharides said the school department and the Sanford Building Committee hope to narrow down the list of options during tonight’s meeting, in anticipation of a final gathering on Thursday, June 27, at Sanford High School at 6:30 p.m. At that meeting, the Sanford School Department will announce the recommended site and will take a straw vote on the proposal among those who attend.

The alternative sites that will be discussed at tonight’s meeting were determined after two firms, Sebago Technics and Lavallee-Brensinger, and the Sanford Building Committee identified and considered as many as 118 developable parcels in the city. The sites were selected — and the others eliminated — by focusing on such factors as the shapes of parcels; proximity to water and sewer; accessibility for routine traffic and emergency responses by the police and firefighters; environmental concerns; student population, and areas where that population is most concentrated; and Federal Aviation administration standards, given the location of an airport in the city.

The state’s Department of Education (DOE) listed a new high school and technical center for Sanford as the second-highest priority on its 2011 list of proposals for major capital improvements. The current Sanford High School, which is more than 40 years old, and its adjacent technical center are well beyond their capacity; for years now, the school has had numerous portables that have surrounded the main structure and provided classroom spaces. The structure itself is viable but no longer suitable for a high school and technical center. SHS has 1,290 students, and administrators at the adjacent Sanford Regional Technical Center say they need more space for its growing programs and to accommodate students and stem the number of applicants it has been turning away.

The DOE, which is funding the project, has the final say about which site will be used for the new school and technical center. The project is estimated to cost between $80 million and $100 million. Sanford would need to pay for any additional features not covered by the state’s funds.

Voters on Tuesday addressed a bond proposal that would get the project started. (Please see the story about Tuesday’s referendum that appears on page one of this issue.)

Construction on the new school would begin in 2015 and would be complete in time for the 2017-2018 academic year, Theoharides said.